Thomas Clark (Unknown – October 6, 1835) was a businessman and political figure in

Upper Canada The Province of Upper Canada (french: link=no, province du Haut-Canada) was a part of British Canada established in 1791 by the Kingdom of Great Britain, to govern the central third of the lands in British North America, formerly part of the ...

. He was born in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

and came to Upper Canada in 1791 to seek employment with his cousin, Robert Hamilton. In 1796, he opened a store in Queenston. He then formed a partnership with Samuel Street to transport goods around

Niagara Falls Niagara Falls () is a group of three waterfalls at the southern end of Niagara Gorge, spanning the border between the province of Ontario in Canada and the state of New York in the United States. The largest of the three is Horseshoe Falls, ...

. He owned docks and storage facilities at Queenston, Chippawa and

Fort Erie Fort Erie is a town on the Niagara River in the Niagara Region, Ontario, Canada. It is directly across the river from Buffalo, New York, and is the site of Old Fort Erie which played a prominent role in the War of 1812. Fort Erie is one of Ni ...

. In 1800, when Street left the partnership, he formed a new partnership with Robert Nichol transporting and trading in goods which lasted until 1803. In the same year, he was appointed justice of the peace. Around 1808, he set up several large flour milling complexes with Samuel Street. Besides his partnership with Street, Clark also had an agreement with

John Jacob Astor John Jacob Astor (born Johann Jakob Astor; July 17, 1763 – March 29, 1848) was a German-American businessman, merchant, real estate mogul, and investor who made his fortune mainly in a fur trade monopoly, by smuggling opium into China, and ...

and others for the shipping and sale of flour. During the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...

, he served with distinction as lieutenant-colonel in the Lincoln

Militia A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...

. After the war, he served on the commission which settled claims for war losses; he was also involved in erecting a monument on

Queenston Heights The Queenston Heights is a geographical feature of the Niagara Escarpment immediately above the village of Queenston, Ontario, Canada. Its geography is a promontory formed where the escarpment is divided by the Niagara River. The promontory fo ...

to Major-General

Isaac Brock Major-General Sir Isaac Brock KB (6 October 1769 – 13 October 1812) was a British Army officer and colonial administrator from Guernsey. Brock was assigned to Lower Canada in 1802. Despite facing desertions and near-mutinies, he c ...

. Some of his businesses were destroyed by the

Americans Americans are the Citizenship of the United States, citizens and United States nationality law, nationals of the United States, United States of America.; ; Although direct citizens and nationals make up the majority of Americans, many Multi ...

during the war. In 1815, he became a member of the Legislative Council of Upper Canada. Clark initially supported Robert Gourlay, especially since he was interested in having the restrictions regarding sale of lands to Americans lifted; however, when Gourlay fell into disfavour with the administration, Clark was quick to voice his disapproval of Gourlay. As a land speculator, he also favoured a revision of the policy regarding taxes on uncultivated lands. In 1821, he was selected to a commission to establish a new agreement for sharing revenues with

Lower Canada The Province of Lower Canada (french: province du Bas-Canada) was a British colony on the lower Saint Lawrence River and the shores of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence (1791–1841). It covered the southern portion of the current Province of Quebec an ...

. He also served on commissions charged with improving navigation within the province. He died at

in 1835. Clark's former home, Oak Hall, is now the headquarters for the Niagara Parks Commission.

External links

Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Clark, Thomas Year of birth missing 1835 deaths Members of the Legislative Council of Upper Canada Scottish emigrants to pre-Confederation Ontario People from Dumfries and Galloway People from Niagara-on-the-Lake Immigrants to Upper Canada Canadian justices of the peace